How hard was it for Ken Dorsey, the Cleveland Browns’ new offensive coordinator, to become the Cleveland Browns’ new offensive coordinator?

“It was darn near like a root canal to get this job,” said Dorsey, who is joining one of four NFL teams – speaking of root canals – who have never played in the Super Bowl.

“The thing I respect about this organization and Kevin the most,” said Dorsey, of head coach Kevin Stefanski and the Browns’ hiring process, “is how thorough they are in making these decisions.”

Browns decision makers made several decisions this week, most of them involving coaches on the offensive side of the ball. The headliner was replacing offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt with Dorsey.

“When we made this decision very early on, Ken was a guy that we identified that could help us, help me, be an integral part of this offense,” Stefanski said. “Ken and I have known each other for a little while. We’ve kind of come up in this profession together if you will. Just watching Ken in college, in the pros, having success as a player, having success as a coach. He really fits who we are culturally.”

The quarterback for the University of Miami’s 2001 National Champions, Dorsey had a brief pro career, including two stints (2006, 2008) with the Browns. For the last five years Dorsey was the quarterback coach for the Buffalo Bills, where he had a hand in the development of Bills quarterback Josh Allen.

The 42-year-old Dorsey (a year older than Stefanski) will face a big challenge with the Browns, who had a disastrous season offensively in 2023 when they cycled through five different quarterbacks, had injuries to numerous linemen, and were near the bottom of the league in offensive efficiency.

“When we made this decision (to overhaul the offense) very early on, Ken was a guy that we identified that could help us, help me, be an integral part of this offense,” said Stefanski, who described Dorsey as “a smart person who fits us from a culture standpoint, has had a ton of success really every stop along the way.”

The two biggest challenges facing the Browns’ new offensive coordinator is to get quarterback Deshaun Watson up and running after two basically lost seasons in which he played in only 11 of 35 games due to suspensions and injuries. The other challenge for Dorsey will be as the Browns’ play caller, if Stefanski decides to relinquish those duties, which he has handled in his four years as Browns coach.

“Play calling, which I know everybody wants to talk about. We’ll get there,” said Stefanski. “What’s most important, what I’m looking forward to the most is putting this offense back together with Ken really leading the charge.”

The importance of Dorsey getting Watson back to the level he was at with Houston, when he was a Pro Bowl selection for three consecutive years (2018-20) cannot be understated.

The 2024 season will be year three in Watson’s five-year $230 million contract with the Browns, and Watson’s impact in the first two years has been negligible.

“I’m extremely excited to work with this offense, especially Deshaun, and him being one of the top quarterbacks in this league,” Dorsey said. “The opportunity to go out there this season and help him prove that he really is a top quarterback in this league that can operate and help us win a bunch of football games. So I’m super excited about that opportunity.”

If Project Watson is No. 1 on Dorsey’s to-do list, No. 2 is potentially the aforementioned play-calling duties. In his four years since being named head coach, Stefanski has been stubbornly territorial when it comes to the calling of the plays. It has been him, and him alone, much to the occasional displeasure of Browns fans. But it is hard to argue with the results: assuming Stefanski wins the award this year, it will be two NFL Coach of the Year awards in his four years with the Browns.

The reality is, however, whether it’s Stefanski or Dorsey calling the plays, none of it will matter much if Watson cannot stay on the field.

“The exciting thing about Deshaun,” said Dorsey, “is that, from everything I’ve been told from Kevin and the guys here, he wants to be coached. He wants to be pushed and driven. And I think I’ll be able to pick up where the staff has left off on that.”

In Dorsey’s eyes the equation is simple.

“Our job in the quarterback room is to go out, score points and help us win football games, whether it’s one point or 20 points or whatever,” he said. “And I think when you got a guy like Watson, he’s going to help you do that.”